Thanks for the wonderful reviews -- keep it up! I can't respond to all of them in this space, but there's a lot to say anyway.

Kamiko no Ummei: Glad I could help. Just remember that the real thing is not as pronounced as Rogue's eyes in this story.

Umeplumblossom: Glad to get your stamp of approval. ;) As for other characters, though, I think you're missing the point -- this story is about a gradual romance between Maverick and Rogue, and is mainly centered from Maverick's point of view. Other characters are only in it as they serve the larger plot. It really isn't a story about the team.

That said, I would like to write some side-stories, like quasi-one-shots, looking at the different characters. I don't have anything really planned at the moment, though I figured it would center around the new female student who will be arriving in the next story-arc.

Kamiko no Ummei: This chapter should answer that. Read this, then re-read the last one and you'll see what happened. (I admit it's a blink-and-miss-it bit, but it's actually supposed to be a head-scratcher for a few scenes.)

As for the alternate plot, yes, Jeff is an original character (as are the Fire Twins, even though they don't show up for much of the story). This is an alternate universe to the main Evolution universe, which is officially designated Earth-11052 (the "original" Marvel universe being Earth-616). This version that I created is more like Earth-11052-and-one-fifth. In the standard 11052 universe, Jeff's parents did not die, he did not move to Bayville, and he and Rogue never met. Some changes are simply because I want to, but mostly it all stems from that drunk driving accident.

PuzzledPrincess: Yes, you got Jean exactly. I get irritated when Jean is shown as being perfect. I knew a girl in college very much like her, but while many girls were jealous of her no one who knew her thought she was perfect. I've taken elements from her to use in my portrayal of Jean (though anyone who looked at the two of them side-by-side wouldn't see much resemblance). I'm doing that sort of thing with all the characters, including Jeff.

Kii: Just wait. ;) I know it's hard to be patient with my current writing speed, but that chapter you want is already in my notes and has been for years. As for my knowledge, I just collect random stuff. I'm trained in philosophy, theology, history, and physics, in addition to creative writing.

Wanda: You haven't even seen the stuff that's coming. A few people have gotten peeks at my notes, which cover at least three times as much as what's already been written, probably more like five. You'll be getting more original takes on canon characters -- as well as, if I get that far, a new origin for the Avengers.

Ruiz: Thanks! The trick on writing good fanfic is to treat it like it was an original as much as possible. That means you never let the fact that it's "just a fanfic" interfere with how much care you put into it. Also, beta readers definitely help.

X-Men: Evolution

Maverick #10:

Shadow Dance, Part 4

Shopping for a Fight

by

Bookwyrm

That Didn't Quite Go as Planned.

In retrospect, picking a fight with three mutants might not have been a good idea.

That thought went through Jeff's head at about the same moment as he was slammed into a wall. Hard. He was surprised that the blow didn't crack his ribs, but it certainly sent the world spinning.

Okay, so Dukes' power isn't like Quicksilver's, he thought to himself. Quicksilver's momentum itself is supplied by his power, so if I touch him he stops cold. Dukes, on the other hand, maintains the momentum his super-strength gives him even if he punches me . . .

Jeff ducked just in time to avoid Fred Dukes' fist, and cement chips fell on his head in a brief shower.

Right! Jeff thought. Fight now, analyze later. Bottom line: no trying to roll with his punches.

"Oh, man, I think I'm gonna throw up," moaned Todd Tolansky, who was trying to get up. He clutched his head. "Clobber 'im, Blob! Ow."

"Sure thing, Toad." Fred Dukes rubbed his hands together, obviously relishing the thought of cutting loose. "My pleasure."

"Wait, your callsign is Blob?" Jeff asked incredulously. He couldn't help but smirk. "Couldn't you think of something else? 'Toad' is bad enough, but come on! Show some imagination!"

Blob flushed angrily. "Don't make fun of me," he growled, and tried punching Jeff again. Jeff ducked, but only barely in time -- Dukes was faster than he looked.

"Well, far be it for me to question such a man of stature as yourself," Jeff continued. Under his glasses, his eyes flicked over his surroundings, trying to find some sort of advantage. "But still, at least you could have tried for something more impressive. How about Indomitable Guy? Or Mountain Man? Maybe Colossus?"

"That one's taken," Quicksilver noted, sounding bored.

Jeff glanced at him, realizing that the white-haired boy hadn't moved since the start of the confrontation. He seemed content to let Dukes be the one fighting.

Dukes took advantage of Jeff's momentary distraction and managed to grab the multiweapon. Jeff tried to twist it out of his grasp, but the huge mutant was too strong.

"Let's see how tough you are without your fancy stick," Blob taunted, waving the silver bo staff in the air.

"Well, that's extraordinarily sportsmanlike," Jeff commented, straightening up. "Not that I expected anything less, of course. I understand the Brotherhood holds itself to the highest standards."

"Higher than the X-Men," Pietro retorted. "Brotherhood members have useful powers. None of that stuff like that girl at the Institute . . . what's her power, fake fireworks? I guess Xavier's planning to have her entertain homo inferior children. It's about all she's good for. As for you? I was expecting more. You certainly talked tougher on Monday."

"Is that what this is about?" Jeff asked, watching Toad slowly hop behind Blob. He really does look toad-like when he does that, Jeff thought to himself. Though where he got that weird jumpsuit he's wearing is beyond me. "I stopped you on Monday, and now you've brought in some stooges to help beat me up because you can't take me on your own?"

In less than an eyeblink, Pietro was inches from Jeff's face. "Cool it, man. I can run circles around you before you have time to take a step. You can't touch me, so you don't have a chance."

Fred Dukes had taken a step back, out of reach. Jeff took the opportunity to snap a right-handed hook at Pietro's face. Pietro, of course, saw it coming and ducked back just far enough for Jeff to miss. "Ha! See? You can't even -- aagggh!"

Jeff hadn't intended to hit him in the first place, only distract him long enough to bring out the can of pepper spray he had concealed in his left hand. Jeff was beginning to think he had bitten off more than he could chew with this little encounter, but at least he had managed to plan ahead. The spray caught Pietro full in the face, causing him to screech in pain and rub his eyes with superhuman speed.

"Sorry, didn't quite catch that," said Jeff, throwing a punch again. This time he connected, sending the much skinnier boy sprawling on the ground.

"Hey!" shouted Blob, stepping forward again. Jeff ducked under his punch, landing on his shoulder and rolling. He got up and began running for his bike.

"He's gettin' away!" yelled Toad. Jeff looked over his shoulder to see Toad in mid-air, leaping at him. He tried moving to the side, but Toad managed to grab onto his arm. Jeff changed his tactic, grabbing onto Toad's arm as well spinning on one foot. Toad slammed into the side of the building and fell to the ground, dazed once again.

Jeff jumped on his bike, turning the key and revving the engine. He swung wide to come around and point at the gate, but Fred Dukes was already running for it. He'd get there before Jeff did, and Pietro was getting back up. Even if Jeff managed to get by the Blob, he'd still have Quicksilver on his tail.

Blast, Jeff thought. Time for Plan B. Whatever that is.

Jeff spun the bike around again and roared off, headed into the ruined complex.

The salesgirl smiled brainlessly. "Anything I can help you with?" she asked. Her face was framed by short blond hair done up in that just-rolled-out-of-bed look that actually took two hours to get right. She wore a pink blouse and black dress pants, and her purple and silver nametag read "My Name Is KATE." An obnoxiously cheerful smiley face followed the name.

Oh, great, it's Tour Guide Barbie's mall-rat cousin, Rogue thought. New from Matel: it's Salesgirl Kate!

"We're looking for some dresses," Jean told her. "For a dance."

"Oh, for all three of you?" the girl asked, looking them over. She seemed to hesitate when she got to Rogue.

Rogue looked away, feeling naked without her makeup on. Somehow -- she wasn't sure how, actually -- Jean and Kitty had managed to talk her into washing off her makeup before entering the store. They'd told her it would be easier to match skin tones and the like. At least they hadn't insisted on returning home to have her change out of her ripped and studded clothing.

"Yes, that's right," Jean told her. "All three of us. We're looking for something for Marie here first."

Rogue fought a grimace and held Jeff's physics book a little tighter. She knew Jean was just trying to keep up the appearance of normalcy, but Rogue had always hated that name. Though I wonder if Jeff would prefer it? Something more normal? She pushed the thought away.

"Well, honey, you're a little tough," Kate said to Rogue. She looked her up and down. "You'd have a great hourglass if you showed it off a little more. There are some dresses over here that might work."

"No way," Rogue said as Salesgirl Kate pulled out the first dress. It was backless; the thought of exposing so much skin gave her shivers.

Jean saw the difficulty too. "Perhaps something a little more modest?" she asked.

A trace of disapproval flittered across Salesgirl Kate's face, but was quickly covered by her plastic-looking smile. "Well, we have a few others. Perhaps this one?"

Rogue hadn't known that it was so hard to pick out a dress. The number of designs was simply mind-boggling, and she wasn't used to dressing to show off her figure. Normally she tried to hide it as much as possible. Sure, there was that green outfit she wore when she felt stifled, which revealed a lot while still protecting her skin, but Rogue didn't think of that as dressing for attraction.

The dresses that Salesgirl Kate picked out were horrible. Not that they were ugly -- far from it. It was just she kept picking out things as far from Rogue's normal wardrobe as could be, at least without dipping into the Catholic schoolgirl look. The problem wasn't just that they exposed skin, either; the designs made Rogue feel uncomfortably aware of her horse-faced, clunky body. So what if she had a shapely figure or a big chest? She'd still look like she was playing dress-up next to Jean and Kitty and even Salesgirl Kate.

As the fashion show went on, though, Rogue was forced to feel a grudging admiration for Jean and Kitty . . . even gratitude. She barely had to do anything. Kitty was being energetic and cheerful enough to match Kate, and kept them all looking at various designs. Jean, for her part, was carefully steering Salesgirl Kate away from the most revealing dresses, and kept the girl from getting too close to Rogue.

Of course, if it weren't for them I wouldn't be here in the first place, Rogue thought. Can't forget that.

"No, a dress with sleeves won't fit your shoulders so well," said Salesgirl Kate. "They're a bit broad. You obviously work out a lot. Nothing really bad about that, of course! It's just hard to get sleeves to fit muscles like yours so well. And you should really show some more chest. There's nothing that wraps the boys around your finger like some good cleavage, and you've got plenty."

Rogue eyed the dress the other girl was holding. She'd never worn anything as revealing as that, but maybe she had a point. There's not much choice anyway, not with these dresses. And maybe she's right . . . maybe I have to do something to compensate for the way I look normally. I can probably get away with that dress. I'll just have to be careful not to brush up against anyone.

Just as Rogue was about to open her mouth, though, Jean smoothly took the dress from Kate. "Thank you," she said, smiling. "We probably have enough to look at for now. Kitty, do you want to go next?"

"Like, sure thing!" Kitty said, sounding extra-bubbly. She touched Salesgirl Kate's wrist as she slipped by, drawing her to another section of the department. "Come on, I saw this really cute dress over here and I'm just dying to know your opinion . . ."

When the other two girls were gone, Jean looked at Rogue and dropped the smile. "Finally. Sorry about that, Rogue. I didn't know she'd be so . . . pushy. We'd better have you try these while Kitty keeps her occupied." Without looking, Jean replaced Kate's latest choice back on the rack and selected two others with more modest cuts.

Rogue stayed silent as Jean led her to the changing rooms. She glanced over to where Kitty was picking up dress after dress and asking Kate a multitude of questions. She's distracting her, Rogue realized. So I can try these on without her making any more comments.

But the damage was done. Rogue looked at herself in the mirror, wearing a black dress that came down below her knees and halfway down her upper arms. I look like I'm going to a funeral or something, Rogue thought.

Rogue shook her head. "This isn't going to work."

"Don't let her get to you," Jean told her. "She doesn't know about your power. She just thinks you're overly modest and she's trying to draw you out."

"It doesn't matter." Rogue frowned and looked down at the dress. "Whether she thinks I'm shy or I'm a Bible-thumpin' prude, she's right. I'm a tomboy an' I look it."

Jean smiled. Like I'm a little kid that just said something cute, Rogue thought sourly. "Rogue, maybe with the way you normally dress you could be called a tomboy, but you've got plenty of 'girl' to spare, enough to drive most of the girls at school as green as your eyes." Jean paused, looking at Rogue's face. "Well, as green as they are at other times."

Rogue glanced in the mirror and saw her eyes were grey. She gritted her teeth and looked away again. "See, that's what I'm talkin' about. Freak eyes. Freak everything."

"Oh, come on." Jean showed a trace of a frown. "There's nothing wrong with your eyes. They're unusual, but that's not 'wrong.' Besides, Jeff likes them, you know."

"He does?" For a moment, Rogue looked at her reflection again, but all she saw were the same dull-grey eyes she'd seen most of her teenaged life. They always seemed to be grey when she saw them. Ugly. Hard.

Then Rogue frowned, and her eyes shifted to Jean's reflection. "Wait. How do you know that?"

Jean actually looked embarrassed. "Oh. Well. I . . . I was talking to him."

"You were talking to him . . . about me?" Rogue didn't know whether to laugh at the expression on Jean's face -- Miss Perfect is actually nervous? -- or get on her case about talking behind her back.

"Yeah. Sorry. I was just . . . wanting to know what he thought about . . . you know, stuff." Jean glanced away, one hand reaching up to tuck a loose lock of hair behind one ear. "Anyway, he said it was the first thing he noticed about you. First grey like a . . . katana, I think he said. And then green, 'like grass after a spring shower.'"

"He said that?" Do my eyes really look that way when I'm happy? Rogue tried looking in the mirror again. Her eyes were still grey. She glanced at Jean. Her eyes are green like that all the time.

"Yeah." Jean grimaced. "I remember, because I was thinking Duncan never said anything about my eyes. Much less my smile."

Rogue frowned. "Now he's telling you about my smile? How come he's telling all this to you?"

"Well . . . I asked him."

"You asked him about what he thought of my smile?"

"No. About . . ." Jean looked away again. "Just about what he was planning. What he thought of you. Just . . . checking."

"Checking?" Rogue scowled. "Ah swear, y'all can't leave me alone!" she said, her accent returning as strong as ever. "Ah can't show the slightest interest in a guy without y'all mother-henning me to death."

Jean blinked. "What?"

Rogue shook her head. "Kitty's been buggin' me about Jeff, Risty's been doing the same about . . . um. Whatever. An' now you're pokin' in on it. It's like Mystique an' Aunt Irene buggin' me about the guys I liked."

"Except we're not trying to keep you from anyone," Jean pointed out. "Mystique was keeping you hidden, but we just want to make certain you're happy."

"No, you want to make me like you," Rogue retorted, gesturing at the mirror. "This isn't me. Or d'you think this is what Jeff wants?"

Jean sighed. "Rogue, I'm not trying to make you like me. Neither is Kitty. We just wanted to give you a chance to do what you never got a chance to do growing up. I know you don't like being reminded of it, but I've been in your head. I know how Irene and Mystique kept you covered up and away from people. Kitty and I just wanted to help you take advantage of your date tonight. That's all.

"And as for Jeff," Jean added, and Rogue was surprised to see her smile widely, "I don't think you have to worry about what he wants. He made that pretty clear yesterday at lunch."

"What do you mean?" Rogue frowned, trying to remember what happened that day.

"Well, Tabitha tried asking him out," Jean told her. "She tried to get him to dump you, using her . . . usual tact. You know how she is. She wouldn't take a hint. Jeff finally ended up saying she was nowhere near as pretty as you were, or even in the same class." She arched one eyebrow, still grinning. "I'm not sure he realized how loud he was at the end."

He said that? Rogue looked at herself in the mirror again. She couldn't see it. Tabitha, for all her trampy behavior, was a looker. Plus she had confidence oozing from every pore, and a natural grace that could probably equal Jean's if Tabitha cared to try. I'm just a plain-faced klutz with weird eyes.

Abruptly, Rogue remembered what it was like back home in Mississippi. All those nights in her room, knowing her schoolmates were out partying. The only goth at the school, even if she'd been manipulated into becoming one in the first place, and so she was a complete outsider. And she'd liked it. That's what she told herself, anyway.

Then one night she went to a dance anyway, without telling Irene. And even though it turned into a disaster, for a little while she actually felt free. For a moment, she was an ordinary girl.

Then it ended, and she'd resigned herself to being covered up for the rest of her life. Unable to touch people. Unable to be . . . normal.

Until Jeff came. What's normal for me now? Rogue wondered. To the world I'm still Rogue . . . but to Jeff, can I be Marie again?

Rogue turned her head to look at Jean. "What other dresses do you have?"

Jean smiled. For the first time, it didn't make Rogue feel patronized.

With the sun going down, the shadows were quickly filling the abandoned lot. Someone seemed to be using the property as a dumping ground of sorts, leaving it full of junk and debris, getting thicker the further one went. It was full of nooks and crannies, making for a good hiding place.

That was exactly the reason why Jeff wasn't there.

Jeff watched Toad and Blob walk through the junkyard, obviously searching for him. They didn't seem to be putting much effort into it, though. That was fine by him. He wasn't putting much effort into hiding. In fact, if they looked up, they'd probably see him. But no one ever looked up.

His muscles straining with the effort, Jeff finally managed to get to the top of the drainage pipe he'd been climbing. He hooked his fingers into the gutter, pulling carefully to test its strength.

"D'you see anything, Toad?" Blob called out from below.

The gutter seemed strong enough. Jeff put more weight on it, swinging one leg up and over.

"Nah," came Toad's voice. "D'ere ain't even any good flies."

Please don't tell me "Toad" actually eats flies, Jeff thought as he pulled himself up. That's just taking things too far.

"Man, I hope we find this guy soon," Blob said. Jeff wasn't watching, but he could just imaging the huge teen scratching his mohawk like an idiot. "I'm gettin' hungry."

The gutter creaked under Jeff's weight. Jeff froze.

"Why'd we have to search through here?" Toad grumbled. "Quicksilver could do it faster."

Jeff took a deep breath, then let go of the drainage pipe. The gutter creaked even more.

"Why are we even doing this at all?" Blob returned.

"'Cause that Mav'rick dude needs to be taught a lesson," Toad told him. There was a crash from below, evidently due to their careful searching methods. "I ain't got an argument wit' that."

"I guess not . . ."

One of the rivets popped out, sounding like a gunshot to Jeff. Panicking, he launched himself up onto the roof, flattening himself out on his back so that he was -- hopefully -- out of sight.

"Toad, did'ya hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Dunno. Sounded like someone, though."

"Where?"

"Dunno. Maybe up on the roof, I think."

Frak, Jeff thought.

"T'roof? Nah. He can't climb up there."

"Well, why don'tcha check anyway? Even if he ain't there, you can maybe still see him from the roof."

A sudden gust of wind prevented Jeff from hearing Toad's reply. Distracted, he looked up. His eyes narrowed. After a moment, he grunted softly as several details suddenly clicked into place.

"So that's what this is about."

The gutter creaked again. "Okay, okay, I'm goin' already!" Toad shouted.

Time to think about that later, Jeff thought to himself, as he scrambled up into a crouch, scanning the rooftop for some advantage. But this just became much more than a simple schoolboy brawl.

Rogue glared at Kitty. "Absolutely not!"

"Oh, come on, Rogue," Kitty wheedled, giggling at her tone. "It couldn't hurt to try!"

"No!" Rogue crossed her arms in front of her chest defensively. "Not gonna happen, Valley-Brat! What good would it do, anyway? It's not like Jeff's gonna see it!"

Kitty seemed strangely unfazed by the look of pure death her roommate was giving her. "Well, no, of course not," she said, giving her a little smile. "The point is to make you feel like a new woman, and nothing does that better than some new--"

"I am not! Getting! A new! Bra!"

Some of Rogue's vehemence seemed to get through this time, because Kitty blinked. "Well, I was actually thinking of a matching set . . ."

"No!" Rogue gritted her teeth. "I have plenty of underwear. And I don't need some frilly pink thing with bows on it to remind me I'm a girl. I see it every time I look in the freakin' mirror!"

[Okay, guys, enough already!]

Rogue "heard" Jean's voice in her head, the same way she could "see" Jean's annoyed expression even though the telepath was in the changing room. It was obvious from the look on Kitty's face that she heard it too.

[Kitty, Rogue picked out a dress. Don't push it.]

Kitty just shrugged, not losing her cheerful look. Rogue, meanwhile, looked down, considering the dress draped over her arm. Kitty had been the one to find it, actually, while she was off distracting Salesgirl Kate. It was a black evening gown, surprisingly fancy for this store and especially the price. Still a bit steep for her normally, but Jean had given the Prof a cranium-call and he'd agreed to advance her allowance for next month. The downside was that she had to do some extra training with him in private, which he'd been after her to do anyway.

The dress had an almost Asian cut to it, with the cloth completely covering her shoulders and the nape of her neck. It showed no cleavage, which Salesgirl Kate had expressed a vague disapproval for, but it had a green vine pattern that accented her bustline. The skirt of the dress was longer on the right, going up just shy of mid-thigh on the left, and the vine pattern wound down the length twice, or perhaps up was a better term.

Jean assured her that the subtle green would help show off Rogue's eyes when she was in a good mood, but Rogue just cared that it covered her enough to make her comfortable. She did her best to ignore the nagging doubts about what Jeff might think of the choice.

"Well, you're going to get some new gloves, right?" Kitty said after a moment.

Rogue looked up again. "Gloves?"

"Well, your usual biker gloves don't exactly match it, y'know."

"Oh, right." Rogue grimaced. Now she'd have to spend some time out looking around thrift shops. Who knows how long that would take.

"You want some gloves?" came Salesgirl Kate's vapid voice as she rounded one of the clothing stacks. She'd been off replacing the rejected dresses from the other girls. Rogue hid a wince. She'd been hoping the blonde would just have disappeared.

"Yeah, some arm-length ones," Kitty said, her equally brainless act in place again. "They would just be darling with that dress, you know? Do you, like, sell those?"

"You mean opera gloves?" Kate asked rhetorically. She shook her head. "No, I'm sorry, we don't."

"Darn." Kitty frowned. "Do you know of anyplace where we could get them?"

Kate looked thoughtful. "Well, there's Hot Topic. I saw a pair in the display case on the way to work today. They were black and I'm sure they'd look great with that."

Rogue made a face. "Anywhere else?" she asked with more than a little sarcasm. "I hate that place. Everyone there's obsessed with vampires these days and think their DeadJournals are edgy."

Kate blinked at Rogue's vehemence. "Not that I know of, no. Claire's has them, but normally only in prom season."

"Well, want to try a Claire's?" Kitty asked, looking coy.

Rogue rolled her eyes. Kitty grinned.

"Thanks, we'll check out Hot Topic when we're done here," Kitty bubbled. "Thanks so much for your help!"

Kate gave Kitty her Barbie-like smile again. "Not a problem! Do you want to ring up now?"

"Oh, Jean's not done yet. We'll wait until she is so we can, like, give her feedback, y'know?"

"Actually, I'm ready," Rogue said quickly. It would get her out of the store and away from Salesgirl Kate. "You guys don't need my help, an' I've still got Jeff's physics book to read over. We didn't have a pop quiz today so it's got to be tomorrow."

"Okay, then!" Salesgirl Kate turned the smile on Rogue, this time probably fueled by the thought of the commission she'd be making off their purchases. Rogue hid another grimace as she followed Kate over to the cash register.

"So is Jeff your boyfriend?" Kate asked as she began entering codes into the machine.

Why do these places think conversation about private things is necessary? "No," Rogue answered curtly. Then she paused. "Well, maybe." She hadn't actually considered it yet. Can he even be a boyfriend before the first date?

"Maybe?" Kate quirked an eyebrow at her. For a moment, it was eerily similar to what Jeff did. Then Kate smiled again, spoiling the illusion. Jeff couldn't look that plastic without a poured mold. "You haven't been going out for long, huh?"

"First date," Rogue mumbled, feeling herself blush. Without her makeup she felt like it was showing even more. Just ring it up already!

"Oh, so there's a school dance?"

"Yeah," Rogue answered, letting a glare run across her face.

Kate looked momentarily startled, but then busied herself with ringing it up. Rogue swiped the debit card that the Prof had given her for her allowance funds, and signed the slip as fast as she could.

"Well, have a good time!" Kate beamed as she handed the bag over to Rogue. "I'm sure Jeff will be glad you asked him."

Rogue took the bag, but paused. "Wait. How'd you know it was a girls-choice dance?"

Kate seemed to hesitate slightly, though she didn't lose her smile. "Well, I just assumed you were going to Bayville High. I saw the fliers up for the dance."

"Oh, right." Rogue shook her head slightly as she walked away. Boy, I'm getting jumpy.

She collected her backpack from the dressing rooms and let the other girls know she was going to wait outside on one of the benches. She found a handy one outside next to a fountain and sat down, pulling Jeff's textbook out and paging through it.

A crudely folded piece of paper fell out as she did so. Curious, Rogue picked it up and opened it, expecting it to be some notes from class. She frowned as she read the abysmally bad handwriting inside. Then her eyes widened as she realized that they weren't class notes. It was a note to Jeff.

"Oh . . . frak."

"Oh, hello, Logan," McCoy said in greeting, looking up from his copy of The Everlasting Man. "Has Kurt recovered from the teleportation experiment?" He paused and frowned as he took in the stocky mutant's body-language: hunched-over, clenched fists, chin thrust forward. McCoy sighed to himself. "Is something the matter?"

"The new kid's gotten into my room," Logan snarled. "Where's Chuck? For that matter, where's the kid? He was supposed to be training this afternoon."

"Really? I didn't see anything on the schedule." Not that it really meant anything, McCoy reflected. He had set up a simple program on the faculty network so that each of the instructors could list who was assigned to what, but Logan hardly ever used it.

Logan waved a dismissive hand. "Not official. They were going to practice some armed stuff. Brainiac, Stripes, and the Half-Pint. None of them are around. But Brainiac was here an hour ago. I can still smell him. Do you know where Chuck is?"

"The Professor is down at the Cerebro main console," McCoy said, using a bookmark to save his spot before setting the book down on the coffee table in front of him. Logan turned and stalked down the hallway to the central elevator without another word, but McCoy followed quickly.

"He said there was an odd local reading and wanted to check it out personally," McCoy continued when he had caught up with the other man. They both entered the elevator, Logan as impatient as always. "As for the children, I do know that the girls were off on a shopping expedition. Scott mentioned that Jean had borrowed his car. Do you have any idea why Jeff entered your room?"

"He took the multiweapon." Logan flexed his right hand.

"Oh. I see." McCoy frowned again. "You don't have it locked up?"

"Nah. He got past the booby-trap. What I can't figure out is why he took it like that. He ain't the type to take something just 'cause it's shiny."

"You . . . booby-trap your room?" McCoy asked, as the doors opened.

Logan gave him an almost imperceptible shrug as he stalked out of the elevator. "I like my privacy."

McCoy followed on his heels. "Most people just get a deadbolt."

"I prefer being creative."

"I trust it's nothing lethal?"

"Let's just say that you'll be able to tell if anyone's tripped it."

"I see." McCoy's mouth twitched in amusement.

Logan paused to let the retinal scanner confirm his identity and stepped through the vault-like doors that guarded the entrance to Cerebro's core the moment they opened.

The Cerebro core was a giant spherical chamber buried beneath the west end of the Institute grounds. It was designed to amplify and direct telepathic powers, allowing the user to greatly extend his range. McCoy was still attempting to understand the exact nature of the device. It was a highly advanced piece of technology, far beyond anything he had ever seen.

The central console was at the midpoint of the sphere, at the end of the walkway he and Logan were now walking down. At the console, the control helmet already over his head, sat Xavier. The screens in front of him were flickering with information and shadowed images.

"Yes, Logan, I know," Xavier said softly. Logan didn't comment; he hardly needed to, since it was very hard for Xavier to block out other thoughts when he was using Cerebro directly. "I'm sure he had good reason, however. Or what he thought was good reason."

"Yeah." Logan snorted. "That's the usual thing kids say."

"Actually, I suspect it to be an interesting explanation," Xavier replied. A holographic screen sprang to life in front of them, showing a map of the city. A particular section was glowing, almost a half-mile across. "I've been detecting spikes of mutant power somewhere in this area, but it is surprisingly difficult to pin down. Cerebro suspects it to be the Brotherhood boys, and I've already confirmed that none of them are at their usual residence."

"And you think Jeff might be involved?" McCoy asked.

"The timing is . . . interesting," Xavier replied. "However, I've been running a diagnostic on Cerebro to find out if it's malfunctioning."

"Not likely," Logan grunted. "That part of town has the old ironworks, where Sumo-Boy tried romancin' Jean. Good place for an uninterrupted discussion."

Xavier nodded. "Logan, just in case, would you--"

"Already on it, Chuck," Logan said, walking back out of the Cerebro core. "Since when do I bother waiting for permission?"

Toad pulled himself to the top of the roof and looked around. The building was made up of several sections, with the roof sloping in different areas. Jeff watched him from behind one of the roof sections, hidden beneath an old air compressor.

Toad scratched his head. "He ain't up here!" he called out. "Mehbe he left already!"

"But Quicksilver woulda seen him, right?" Blob replied, his voice echoing slightly off of the building.

"Maybe he sneaked over the fence -- look, I can see his motorbike! He must have left it behind!" Toad sounded excited.

Frak. Didn't hide that thing as well as I thought I did, Jeff thought. Still, maybe they'll give up now.

"Hey, I got an idea, Blob," Toad yelled. "Smash his bike to bits! That'll teach him, right?"

"Hey . . . good idea." Blob suddenly sounded a lot happier than he had been a few seconds before. "Where is it?"

Jeff felt the blood drain out of his face. Smash Dad's bike?

He stood up, climbing over the roof as Toad directed Blob to where he'd hidden his Ninja. Jeff very deliberately reached out and tapped Toad on the shoulder.

Toad screamed and flipped around, falling to his back. Absently, Jeff realized he must be striking a suitably dramatic pose, silhouetted against the setting sun. He hardly cared, however; he simply reached down, grabbed Toad's stupid-looking suit by the collar, and hauled him up.

"I don't like it when people mess with my bike," Jeff said quietly. He punched Toad with his left fist. Toad was yelling for help, but Jeff ignored it. "It belonged to my father, see." He punched him again.

"Stop it! Look, I surrender, yo!" Toad was flailing his arms, trying to fend off Jeff's attack. "Hey, we didn't mean it, we was just havin' some fun, you know?"

"Really?" Jeff snarled. "So that's why you decided to ambush me three-to-one? Lots of fun." He dropped Toad to the roof's surface, disgusted with the way things had gone. This whole thing is ridiculous. I mean, I can tell why they wanted to attack, but why bother pretending? This whole thing is staged like a test. It's obvious now.

Toad made a hawking sound, catching Jeff's attention; he looked down just in time to catch Toad's impossibly long tongue in his face.

"What the frak!" Jeff stumbled back a step, wiping his face and spitting out the sticky, slimy residue that Toad left. It stuck to his glasses, blinding him. He tried taking them off, but his fingers slipped on the slime.

"Ha!" Toad shouted. Jeff could hear him scrambling to his feet. "Got you now!"

Toad slammed into Jeff, who stumbled again at the impact. He got his glasses off just in time to see that he'd run out of roof. His foot came down on empty air, and the only purchase his flailing hands found was the front of Toad's silly-looking jumpsuit.

They both fell.

Rogue rushed back into the store and found Jean and Kitty back at the changing rooms. Jean, sensing Rogue's agitation, looked up with a concerned expression.

Kitty followed her gaze. "Rogue! I thought you were waiting . . . outside?" She trailed off as Rogue thrust the note she'd found into her face.

"Look at this!" Rogue snapped. "Your boyfriend left this for Jeff and I just found it in his physics book."

"Lance?" Kitty took the note, too surprised to raise an objection about what status their relationship really had. "'Maverick,'" she read out loud, "'sory about before, but I had to keep up appearances. I think you might be right, but I couldnt let the Brotherhood know. Their not big on traitors. Meat me at the old ironworks at 5 tonite. Lance.'"

"That's not good," Jean said quietly.

"Not good?" Rogue glared. "It's obviously a trap! Jeff said something came up and he wouldn't have been able to do the practice with us anyway. I should have asked what. He doesn't know what he's getting into! He didn't even know about you-know-what last week. He probably thinks he can take them hand-to-hand but he's never practiced fighting powers!"

"Rogue!" Jean hissed, looking around.

"You're right that it's a trap," Kitty said, looking up from the note. "But this isn't Lance's handwriting. And he knows how to spell better than this!"

"Alright, I'm going to tell the Professor." Jean closed her eyes, took a steadying breath, and let it out slowly. Rogue and Kitty waited expectantly, but with speed-of-thought communication it didn't take long at all for them to hear an echo of the Professor's voice, channeled through Jean.

[What Jean just told me confirms our suspicions, X-Men,] Xavier said, his voice faint like it was coming from the next room. His use of the team name let the girls know that he considered this serious. [I suggest you leave as quickly as possible. Jeff may well need assistance. Wolverine is already on his way.]

[You already knew, Professor?] Jean asked, her voice sounding much stronger. [How?]

[Cerebro. Also, Jeff took Forge's invention from Logan's room,] Xavier replied. His mental voice seemed to reverberate in a chuckle as Kitty and Rogue shared a surprised glance. [No; unlike Bobby and Tabitha, he did not run afoul of Logan's "gifts."]

Rogue couldn't help but smirk.

[Regardless, X-Men, be careful. Follow Wolverine's lead, and do not engage unless attacked first. I suspect there is more to this situation than may first appear.]

"Oh, come on, it's just the Brotherhood," Rogue grumbled. "And can't Kurt just 'port us there? He's been there before."

[Kurt is currently . . . indisposed,] Xavier told her. [The second test with Forge took a lot out of him.]

[Of course, Professor.] Jean opened her eyes. "Kitty, come on, we need to buy these quickly."

"What?" Rogue's mouth dropped open. "You're still concerned about dresses?"

"If we leave too quickly, the saleswoman will remember it," Jean pointed out. "Low profile above all. Besides, it won't waste any time." She fished in her purse and pulled out a set of keys, which she tossed to Rogue. "Here. Get Scott's car and meet us at the front entrance to the mall."

Rogue caught the keys, looking at them skeptically. "You don't think Scott will pitch a fit about someone other than you driving his fancymobile?"

Jean smirked over her shoulder as she walked away. It wasn't a pleasant expression. "So don't tell him. Or do. It might be funny."

Rogue blinked. "That was weird."

Kitty leaned in, her voice low. "Um, Taryn asked Scott to the dance. He said yes."

"What?" Rogue momentarily forgot the emergency. "That's . . ." She shook her head, at a loss for words. Part of her felt funny about that. Another was secretly glad at Jean's loss. Of course, she had Jeff now . . .

Which brought her mind back to current events. "The Gossip Girls TV hour has been rescheduled, Valley-Brat," Rogue said, scowling at Kitty before turning away. "You guys better be there when I pull up or I might leave without you."

Kate, the college-aged saleswoman who had been helping the three girls, watched Jean and Kitty leave in a hurry. She lost her characteristic too-wide smile and assumed a scowl instead.

So. Pietro set a little trap for McGovern and it seems McGovern walked right into it. Mystique crossed her arms, considering things. It's possible that I underestimated him . . . he is only seventeen, and could well be suffering from delusions of invulnerability like most children his age. On the other hand . . . I'm rarely wrong when it comes to people.

Magneto. He must be orchestrating it. Or rather, telling his son to put it together. It's a test. Mystique resumed Kate's pleasant expression as she began walking to the back of the store. I hope for my Marie's sake that he's strong enough to pass. I can't help him if Magneto's there.

Though "Kate" gave no outward sign of it, Mystique mentally sighed. To think she had gone to the effort of finding an appropriate dress for Marie, slipping it onto the display rack here, and faking a price for it within Marie's means; and then subduing and impersonating one of the employees just to make certain that the girls would find it; all of that, and McGovern had to be impulsive or gullible enough to walk into a situation that might leave him unable to take her Marie on her first-ever date.

Stepping into one of the storage rooms, Mystique indulged herself and shifted back to her normal form. She sighed for real this time, leaning against a pile of boxes. If only Erik hadn't found us, she thought, not for the first time. I could have raised Marie properly, been there as a mother should. But no, it's back to this stupid war of his. Even in "death" I can't escape it.

She took a deep breath and straightened again. No use dwelling on the past. I might as well wish for Kurt as well. Both my children think ill of me, when I've only ever done my best for them. I can only watch over them from the shadows now. Mystique scowled. Xavier and Magneto . . . If I can remove them, I must. For the sake of my children.

To Be Continued . . .

Author's Note

Not a whole lot to say about this chapter, which feels weird because it gave me so much trouble. It's hard to make shopping interesting. I wanted to do it, though. I'm one of those authors who likes torturing his characters, and the thought of Rogue going dress-shopping was irresistible. It's so far outside her comfort zone as to obliterate all traces of it.

Those of you who were perhaps a little confused as to what's happening with the rest of the team, keep in mind that this is taking place during an episode. It might help to go watch it and match things up, with the caveat that anything sparked by Jeff's presence in Bayville (such as the girls going shopping together) wouldn't be in the show. The full series can be found on Hulu.

My one and only beta reader for this chapter expressed doubts about two points, so I'll address them here; I'd tried to rewrite it, but it just came off as infodumping -- and I hate infodumping.

The first was the subject of Hot Topic. Rogue is not, I repeat not, a "real" goth. She doesn't dress that way or act that way. I think the creators of the show didn't quite get the difference. Rogue would, however, share the same goth tendency towards individuality and creating her own look rather than buy something off a shelf. This isn't shown much in the show, of course, due to a typical tendency to keep characters in the same or similar outfits for easy recognition.

This brings us to Hot Topic. For those who don't know what it is, it used to be a good place to go to for goth fashion. Not the end product, exactly, but it was okay. Now it's over-commercialized, like a darker, more brooding version of the typical mall-crawler's hangout. Rogue has a carefully cultivated disdain for the store. Don't tell her I said so, but she can be pretty elitist.

The other issue is Mystique. My beta reader felt she was becoming too sympathetic. My interpretation of the character, however, is based on what I saw in the show. (Perhaps I'll write up a full explanation and analysis of her character on some future date.) Mystique didn't want to work for Magneto, and got out as quickly as possible. The only things she ever seemed to care for were either her children or revenge; as she is a born, amoral manipulator, she would think nothing of giving her children whatever advantages she can get them. She has no other way of expressing love. It's like something out of a Shakespearean tragedy, really.

Stay tuned for more mayhem sometime after the new year. I'll try to hurry it up. I can't leave Maverick hanging like that -- after all, he's only got so far to fall. ;)

As always, keep the reviews coming! Let me know what you like.